Rochester School for the Deaf. Lexington School for the Deaf. Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf. Henry Viscardi School. Lavelle School for the Blind. The New York Institute for the Blind. Cleary School for the Deaf. New York School for the Deaf. St. Mary's School for the Deaf. St. Joseph's School for the Deaf. St. Frances de Sales School for the Deaf.
All of these 11 schools' futures are in jeopardy.
When I first read that New York State's Governor Cuomo proposed 1.5 billion cut in the education budget, I knew that the 4201 schools would be impacted one way or another, but I was not sure how. Before I continue, I'd like to take a moment what "4201" means for 11 schools I mentioned above. Copied and pasted from http://4201schoolsassociation.wordpress.com/about-us/ :
"In 1947, New York lawmakers enacted legislation designating certain schools to serve the special education needs of children who are deaf, blind and/or severely physically disabled. The 4201 schools – so known because of the specific provision of the Education Law (§4201) where the schools are listed – have been providing unique and appropriate educational and related services to students with low-incidence disabilities in New York State for nearly 200 years."
So these schools are private, state-supported schools meeting the needs of the students with various disablities. I have two children who attend one of the 4201 schools where they are thriving and I really love the school. The administrators and the board of directors are working together to ensure that the schools have resources to best meet the students' needs.
Anyway, this past Monday I went to PSA (Parents-Staff Association) meeting where we listened to Dr. Mowl who is a Chairperson of 4201 Schools Association as well as a superintendent of one of the schools. He gravely explained to us what Governor Cuomo's budget proposal meant for the 11 schools. He explained that in the past, the money from the state government went to the schools for the staff's payroll mostly and the money from surrounding school districts where the students resided in went to schools for tuition, food, standardized tests, assessments, etc., to ensure the success of the students.
Governor Cuomo wants to shift the direct budget appropriation which has been used for many years to a rate-setting methodology, which means the money would be sent to school districts instead The school districts would have more say in how the students with various needs would receive education. Remember the school districts have economic struggles also, and from my understanding, the average cost of a Deaf student is usually around $60,000 (depending on where the student lives and his/her needs) and of course, the school districts would rather keep the money for themselves instead of sending it to a Deaf school. Okay, let me say this... If the budget proposal regarding the 4201 schools goes through, the parents might find the option to send their child/children to any 4201 schools closed. NOT all Deaf students succeed in the mainstreaming, as I have observed when I lived in Indiana.
As for me, as a parent, my children's happiness is important, of course. Their ability to thrive at their school means being "whole"... emotionally, academically, and socially. If one of the aspects is lacking, other aspects would be impacted. I can safely say that both of my kids did experience mainstreaming at their local elementary schools in Indiana and while they might have thrived academically, they were struggling socially. Hence their emotions were affected. If the school district where I reside in decide that mainstreaming would be the best option for both of my kids, they'd likely to re-experience the social struggles as mainstreamed Deaf students which is something I don't want for both of them. Plus being forced to rely on the interpreters all day, likely missing out something, etc... can be somewhat draining.
So I have deep concerns about this. So far, there are tentative plans of going to Albany on Advoacay Day on March 2nd and going to the rally on March 10th, as well as letter-writing campaign, testimonies of students who thrive at the 4201 schools, etc. Dr. Mowl did warn that even if we successfully diverted the budget proposal from impacting the 4201 schools, the proposal would continue being brought up yearly as long as the state had the economic woes.
How do I feel about this? I am tired of this political bullshit. All because the kids are deaf which is "profitable" to the school districts? What about their social needs? Their academic needs? Their emotional needs? When I first learned of my son's progressive hearing loss, I found myself on the battlefield against a particular school district, just because he was not deaf enough... when I wanted him to go to a Deaf school. At 8 months pregnant with my second child, I spent almost 4 hours at my very first case conference, with an audiologist who was on my side, against three staff from the school district. Finally they gave me what I wanted, on two conditions... that when a slot in the universal Pre-K program opened up, I SHOULD, without any question, withdraw him out of the Deaf school and that I got the written form from my son's primary doctor stating that he had progressive hearing loss. On the advise from my friends, we moved out of that town to a different town where its school district was more friendly and more supportive of parents. That was years ago, and we have moved to Indiana and then back to here in NYS last year and we are living in a different town now.
Because of it, I will be involved in seeing to that the proposal be amended so that the students of varying needs could have options to go to any of 4201 schools. My son wants to spend his 4 last years in high school with people he knows and my daughter is thriving, enjoying the attention from her teachers and developing the social and leadership skills there. Why deprive them of those opportunities? They have had enough of changes of their academic placements. And I know that many parents want to have the option for their child/children to attend any of 4201 schools open.
For more information on 4201 schools:
http://4201schoolsassociation.wordpress.com/
Links:
http://www.rsdeaf.org/news.asp?action=view&ID=583
http://www.deafnyaction.org/
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9aSRwYhKTI&feature=player_embedded (Aidan Mack)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAAQuSKjUm4&feature=player_embedded (Barb Digi)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuSTda_AeLg (Dr. Don)
For New Yorkers, I urge you to contact Governor Cuomo's office to express your concerns about the budget proposal impacting on 4201 schools:
Write letters/send b/vlogs to: http://www.governor.ny.gov/
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